Inducted into the Congress by Rajiv Gandhi and first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1980, Capt. Singh had been campaigning to mark the first state-election victory for the grand old party after the 2014 Lok Sabha debacle.

Singh contested on the Patiala (Urban) seat. The assembly segment has been represented by him on three consecutive occasions, from 2002 to 2014.

The Congress secured 77 out of 117 seats in the state Assembly polls. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) won 20 seats on its debut, making as the second largest party in the Punjab Assembly.